Normal Maps with vray in 3ds Max?

[braddewald]

I can't seem to get normal maps to work with Vray in 3ds Max.

 

I've tried to:

 

1) just use a normal map in the bump slot (decent results -- although I'm 99% sure that it is just converting it to grayscale behind the scenes which is incorrect)

2) use the "VrayNormalMap" (worse results)

3) use the standard "Normal Bump" map (worst results)

 

I can't really find anything online about this either other than defunct threads from 2006-7 which say that Vray doesn't (didn't) support normal maps at all.

 

Can somebody point me in the right direction?

[Scott Schroeder]

If I remember correctly the method the normal map is displayed in plays into how your normal map is shown, at least for the standard normal bump map. If I can push past the fuzz in my head, I think either world or screen will give you better results than the default tangent.

 

The Vray normal map doesn't use this so I'd say use the Vray one since it's simplified. Does your normal map have the height map in the alpha channel? In many game engines, normal maps like to have the height map in the alpha (or referred from a height map file) so it knows how far to push the normals.

[braddewald]

It doesn't look like it has an alpha channel. I'll give the VrayNormalMap another spin. Thanks for the help.

[SkylineArch]

I have found that a good grayscale bumpmap works better than a normal map, the results are cleaner and renders properly, particularly on a curved surface, the normal map will attempt to "flatten it out". Although, it may have just been my particular situation and normal map I was using.